membership applicationGUIDANCE NOTES

APM CorporateAccreditationguidance for completing youraccreditation application

CONTENTS

Overview

The APM FIVE Dimensions of Professionalism 3

Benefits APM Corporate Accreditation 3

Application process

Stage 1 – Initial discussion 3

Stage 2 – Completing your application 3

Stage 3 – The assessment 3

Stage 4 – Assessment decision 4

Stage 5 – Annual renewal 4

Assessment criteria 4

Assessment standards 5

Guidance on completing your application form

Section 1 – Your details 6

Section 2 – Details of your organisation 6

Section 3 – Demonstrating a breadth of knowledge 6

Section 4 – Demonstrating a depth of ability 6

Section 5 – Achievement through qualifications and professional experience 6

Section 6 – Commitment to continuing professional development 6

Section 7 – Accountability through professional memberships 6

Pricing 7

Types of accreditation available 7

Further detailsIf you have any questions that these guidance notes have not addressed please contact:

The Accreditation Team,

Association for Project Management, Ibis House, Regent Park,

Summerleys Road, Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, HP27 9LE.

Telephone: 0845 458 1944 or email: accreditation@apm.org.uk

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Overview

APM Accreditation recognises the commitment of organisations and professional development services to APM’s definition of project management professionalism. APM Accreditation assesses your company in its commitment to the development of the association’s five dimensions of professionalism, each of which is supported by an APM standard.

The APM FIVE Dimensions of Professionalism:

■ breadth of understanding as defined by the APM Body of Knowledge

■ depth of ability in line with the APM Competence Framework

■ achievement through professional qualifications and a portfolio of evidence

■ commitment through Continuing Professional Development

■ accountability through APM membership and the APM Code of Professional Conduct

Benefits of APM Corporate Accreditation

APM Corporate Accreditation will help you stand out as an exemplar in the development of project management professionals. It provides assurances to your customers and suppliers and allows you to attract and retain the best project management talent in the country.

To help promote your successful accreditation, you will receive a certificate, an APM Accreditation logo and a listing and link on the APM website. You will also receive a copy of the assessor’s report.

Application process

Stage 1 – Initial discussion

Once you have registered your interest in applying for Corporate Accreditation you will be assigned a partnership development manager who will discuss your needs and the nature of your application. Upon agreement that you wish to formally apply to become corporately accredited you will be sent an application form.

Stage 2 – Completing your application

To complete your application, you should answer the questions in the form as fully as possible. Assessors will look for evidence of, and commitment to, the five dimensions of professionalism. Applications should not exceed 20 pages in total excluding appendices.

Stage 3 – The assessment

Your completed application form will be sent to an accreditation assessor along with a statistical report drawn from the APM membership database confirming your participation in the Corporate Partnership Programme, the number of individual members employed by your company and the number of individuals who have taken APM qualifications.

At initial application a site visit will normally be arranged to enable the assessor to discuss your application in detail. The need for a site visit at reaccreditation will be determined during the reaccreditation process.

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Stage 4 – Assessment decision

Once your assessor has reviewed your application they will be in a position to confirm your accreditation.

Re-assessmentShould your application not meet the standards of APM Corporate Accreditation, it will be automatically reviewed by the Corporate Accreditation lead assessor. If the lead assessor agrees with the adjudication you will be provided with the assessors’ report plus advice on areas that require development within your programme to meet the standards of the accreditation.

You may apply to be re-assessed at any point. During your re-assessment the assessor will look for your response to the comments in the feedback report. This re-assessment is chargeable.

If the lead assessor feels that sufficient evidence is available in your initial application, it will be re-assessed without charge.

Stage 5 – Annual renewal

On the first and second anniversary of your accreditation you will be sent a renewal note and invoice and asked to confirm that the standards recognised through your initial assessment have been maintained. On the third anniversary of your assessment you will be invited to go through a full re-assessment.

Assessment criteria

Assessors are looking for evidence and support of the five dimensions of project management professionalism.

The nature of this evidence and support, and the way in which it is presented, is likely to be different in each application, however your application should not exceed 20 pages excluding appendices.

Each dimension is supported by an APM standard. It is not mandatory that you align to these products and services, but your application will be advantaged if you do.

Each component will be reviewed against the assessment standards and will be given a score from 0-5. To meet the accreditation standards you will be expected to achieve a minimum score of 15 out of 25 points with no single component assessed to be less than 1.

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Assessment standards

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Body of Competence Qualifications CPD Membership Knowledge Framework

No alignment to aBody of Knowledge.

No alignment to any competence framework.

No alignment to any qualifications.

No CPD undertaken. No provision for staff to become members of professional bodies.

Some reference to a formal body of knowledge in project management.

Some reference to a related competence framework in project management.

Related qualifications are preferred by your organisation.

CPD encouraged, but only when explicitly related to a project.

Membership of professional bodies favoured.

Some reference to the APM Body of Knowledge in project management.

Some reference to the APM Competence Framework in project management activities.

Project management qualifications are preferred by your organisation.

CPD encouraged but only within a formal appraisal/ assessment programme.

Membership of a project management professional body favoured.

APM Body of Knowledge recognised as a core reference in project management activities.

APM Competence Framework recognised as a core reference in project management activities.

Professional project management qualifications available through employer.

CPD opportunities available and positively encouraged.

All project management staff are encouraged to be a member of a project management professional body.

APM Body of is the

lead reference in project management activities.

APM Competence Framework is the lead reference in project management activities.

All project management staff expected to take APM project management qualifications.

All project management staff expected to undertake CPD.

All project management staff expected to be a member of a project management professional body.

All project management development activities demonstrably linked to APM Body of

All project management development activities formally linked to APM Competence Framework.

All project management staff mandated to complete relevant APM project management qualifications.

All project management staff mandated to complete and record CPD.

All project management staff mandated to become APM members.

Score

0

1

2

3

4

5

Knowledge

Knowledge.

Guidance on completing your application form

Section 1 – Your details

Please complete all parts of this section. Include the details of the main contact during the assessment and the name of the organisation, section, programme or scheme to be accredited – this will be the name that is put on your certificate. You should also include your Corporate Partnership Programme number – participation in the APM Corporate Partnership Programme is a mandatory part of your application.

Section 2 – Details of your organisation

In this section you should provide some background and context to your application. It will help the assessor understand the support you provide to the five dimensions of professionalism. This should include a full profile of your organisation; if appropriate you should also provide a profile of the area of your organisation that is to be accredited. You should provide details of the nature and structure of governance, aims and policies related to your accreditation application and also the most senior person involved in the programme.

You should detail how your scheme works, including supporting staff, external suppliers into the scheme, external accreditations, auditing and evaluation and quality control of the application.

Section 3 – Demonstrating a breadth of knowledge

Your application should provide evidence that your organisation or scheme recognises a structured body of project management knowledge. This may be the APM Body of Knowledge or one developed internally. The latter should demonstrate sufficient breadth to support the development of project professionals. The assessor will also seek evidence of how this body of knowledge is embedded within the organisation’s project management development programme.

Section 4 – Demonstrating a depth of ability

Your application should provide evidence that your organisation or scheme recognises a structured framework of project management competence. This may be the APM Competence Framework or developed internally. However it should demonstrate sufficient depth to support the development of project professionals and should be consistent with the body of knowledge identified in section 3. The assessor will also seek evidence of how this competence framework is embedded within the organisation’s project management development programme.

Section 5 – Achievement through qualifications and professional experience

Your application should provide evidence that your organisation supports the achievement of professional qualifications. These may be APM qualifications or qualifications from another professional body. They may be project management qualifications, or related to the subject. They may be mandated, encouraged or available for development of project professionals within your organisation.

Section 6 – Commitment to continuing professional development

Your application should provide evidence of a relevant continuing professional development (CPD) scheme. This may be the APM CPD scheme or one developed internally, however it should demonstrate sufficient breadth to support the development of project professionals. The assessor will also seek evidence of how this CPD scheme is embedded within the organisation’s project management development programme.

Section 7 – Accountability through professional memberships

Your application should provide evidence that your organisation or scheme supports its project professionals in achieving external accountability through membership of professional bodies. This may be membership of APM or another professional body. They may be mandated, encouraged or available for project professionals within your organisation.

The assessor will also seek evidence of how this is embedded within the organisation’s project management development programme.

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Pricing

APM Accreditation will last for three years. An initial assessment fee is paid when your assessment begins. Two further payments are paid annually on the anniversary of your assessment approval and subject to signed confirmation that you have maintained the standards attained as part of your initial assessment. If, for any reason during the three year cycle, APM has reason to believe that these standards have not been maintained, then it reserves the right to re-assess your application. At the end of the three year cycle you will be required to undergo another full assessment.

Should your initial assessment not meet the standards of criteria each further re-assessment will be charged a re-assessment fee.

Organisations based outside the UK seeking accreditation will be required to pay additional Assessor costs for any site visits as follows:

■ All subsistence from departure airport

■ Return flight costs

■ Transport to and from airports

■ Hotel (of reasonable standard)

■ Assessor fees incurred for time required over and above that allowed for in a standard UK application

Travel and hotel may be booked by the Assessor if necessary, but will normally be arranged by the applicant organisation.

Types of accreditation available

The APM Accreditation scheme offers four streams of accreditation:

Corporate Accreditation

Many organisations wish to demonstrate to their customers, suppliers and employees that they are committed to the highest standards of project management professional development. Corporate Accreditation assesses an organisation’s professional development scheme, providing confidence to all stakeholders of its dedication to developing project professionals.

Training Provider Accreditation

Professionals seeking the best training support for their project management qualifications will choose APM Accredited Providers. These companies have had their course materials assessed to meet APM standards and are permitted to deliver APM project management qualification exams.

Professional Course Accreditation

APM Professional Course Accreditation is designed to help learners choose the best course in support of their professional project management career. Professional Course Accreditation identifies those courses which are aligned to the APM Body of Knowledge, but do not lead to, and are not in competition with, formal APM qualifications.

Providers who already offer APM accredited courses that deliver APM qualifications are eligible to have other courses, relevant to project, programme and portfolio management, accredited by APM.

Academic Accreditation

Academic Accreditation is designed to help students and professionals choose the best academic education in support of their professional project management career. Academic Accreditation identifies courses and modules which are aligned to the .APM Body of Knowledge

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